Content Marketing and Why it Matters

I know the internet is not something new. With the speed that technology moves these days it might be darn near middle aged. Yes the internet has been a part of everyone’s lives for some time, but that doesn’t mean people realize how much it has changed marketing. Now the average person’s first instinct is going to be to reject that statement. I can hear you all now…clamoring to object. “What do you mean we don’t understand the internets’ influence on marketing?” “It’s so obvious; anyone can understand how much marketing has changed.” Ok, Ok I hear you. I know that most of the marketing tools that the internet has spawned are quite obvious, and becoming more affordable and user friendly by the day. What I am talking about is a shift…a shift in the approach of the customer, the enroller, the follower, the advocate (I will just call them customers from now on for the sake of brevity). While the internet has provided a new slew of tools, none of them guarantee strong brand awareness and certainly not strong brand loyalty. The key to finding (or better yet being found), engaging, and maintaining a strong customer base lies in creating useful, helpful, engaging, and inspiring, content. Oh Yeah, it also must refrain from selling, and be absolutely FREE. Yes… great content is the greatest marketing edge in today’s world. Use it wisely and doors will open.

It wasn’t too long ago that interruption marketing was king. Companies with the biggest budget and best vehicles presented their brand in the best light, and this converted sales time and time again. The internet has caused a shift, a divide, and it grows larger every day. With every search, app, tweet, share, comment, and review it becomes easier and easier for a potential customer to quickly sift through marketing garbage, and get to the truth about your product or service. The louder and flashier you make it the bigger the wall you’re potential customer will build. So, what’s the answer? Well, great content of course.

Great Content Makes For Great Content Marketing

Great content is the strongest tool when it comes to building a relationship with a potential customer. Why? Because it is a relationship built on value and trust. You see, great content offers people valuable information, solutions, and insight. Great content doesn’t sell, great content helps, enlightens, and educates. Have you ever gotten a tasteful newsletter from your local supermarket? I have. It isn’t plastered with bright banner ads promoting everything on sale, or promoting the revamp of their frozen food section. Instead it offers up some great recipes for the upcoming holidays, informs me of efforts made to help a local charity, and educates by interviewing an organic farmer. This, my friends, is content marketing in the works. My supermarket is building a trust based relationship with me rather than selling me on something. As with all great content marketing they are willing to give…for free…before they get.

Your Network Marketing Business Will Benefit From a Good Content Marketing Strategy

So how does this apply to network marketing? Well it is the foundation of attraction marketing. If you offer people a solution to their problems for free i.e. content/value, then you are likely to build a trust based relationship with them, and when they are ready to buy your product or join your opportunity they will come to you. So next time you are ready to start blabbing about your super juice, diet wonder or no brainer opportunity…stop yourself. Remember that approach is dead….you have to give something of real value, before you will ever get. As for those that are inspired to begin creating real, valuable, insightful content…here are a few things to keep in mind.

Understand your objective. Is your content built to simply build a relationship? Is it meant to drive web traffic? Generate leads? Convert sales?

Learn, learn, and learn some more. This is my favorite part about content marketing especially when it is in the form of article marketing or blogging. The pressure to keep creating content acts as a catalyst for education. You have to keep learning to keep creating content that maintains value.

Successful content marketing requires taking action, you don’t need a library of content before you take it public. See step 4, publish something and that will be your catalyst.

Hopefully this article will make you think twice before you start screaming from the rooftops about your business. Remember, when you learn enough to offer solutions to other people’s problems, you will most likely stumble across the solutions to your own. So let a great content marketing strategy be the key to your success.